A Return Visit to the Ivy League
by SprouseGoose
Summary: The second summer short following Senior Year.  It will have three chapters.
1. Chapter 1

_Chapter One_

_Again, I don't own these characters except the ones I create._

Early July brought the 4th of July and the tickets Ellie had given the four to the Yankees and Red Sox game. In addition to being a down right vicious rivalry, the 4th of July was a big deal in Boston. The game was very hotly contested and the benches did clear once. However, no punches were thrown, and no one was ejected. In the end, the Sox did manage to pull out a win after the Yankee's closer blew a lead in the ninth. They were really missing Mariano Rivera after he finally retired the previous off season.

The next weekend was Zack and Cassie's freshman advising conference in Storrs. As it was less than a two hour drive away, there wasn't a need to make it an overnight trip. But, it was a chance to test out the new wheels and see what it could do on the open road. They arrived in Storrs early as Zack had driven a tad bit fast. So, when they got there, they decided to check out the dorm they had requested. They had chosen one that was co-ed and had suites that shared bathrooms. The hope was to have Cassie and Addison on one side and Zack and Woody on the other, but with frequent room swapping.

Fortunately, they were able to get a tour of the dorm that morning and both were pleased by it. The building itself was fairly modern (meaning it had been built since 1985), and had air conditioning, heat, and a mostly working laundry room. It even had a small gym inside with free weights and a treadmill. Both were satisfied that the rooms weren't all that much different in size from the cabins on the S.S. Tipton, and thought they could deal with it for at least a year.

Realizing they were going to be late, they left the dorm and had to hurry across campus to the administration building. Both had to laugh that it would probably be a sprint that would happen again. They did make it on time, and both asked if it was okay for them to schedule together. The adviser didn't mind as it could give him a break once they were done. He pulled up their records on his computer and noted that they had both done well enough on the AP tests to get out of those classes with B's. So, the adviser told them they might want to get as many college prerequisites out of the way as soon as possible. Zack and Cassie both shrugged and figured why not.

UCONN had four areas they required students to take classes: Arts & Humanities, Social Sciences, Science & Technology and Diversity & Multiculturalism. The adviser said their American History scores would take care of the Arts & Humanities requirement and suggested they take one class in each of the other three areas. They ended up choosing classes in sociology, oceanography (they had went to high school on a boat, and both figured that had to count for something), and an anthropology course. Rounding out their schedules were a math class and and basic French (UCONN requires a foreign language). Once their classes had been chosen, they had to work them into a schedule with available openings.

It took a little while, but by the time they left Storrs, Zack and Cassie had their first semester schedules. Both had three classes on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and two on Tuesday and Thursday. They were able to space them so that they didn't start before 9:45 AM any day and didn't end past 2:15 any day. Both were satisfied with that. Not too early and not too late. Before they left Storrs, both drove around for a little bit to get used to the town. And it was a town. The population was only about 10,000 not including students. But, as it was a university town, it seemed to have a lot to do that was geared towards students. Once they were satisfied with what they saw, the began the trip back to Boston.

The next weekend, it was Cody and Bailey's turn. However, their advising conference was set for 9:00 in the morning. As full scholarship winners, they were allowed to schedule ahead of the rest of the incoming freshman class, and as Albright Award winners, they were allowed to schedule first of the full scholarship winners. So, since their appointment was so early, they decided to make a weekend of it. They had called ahead to Jo Thomas to see if there was anything else they needed to bring her while in town. She said everything was taken care of, but she would love to meet them for lunch after their appointment. Right before the headed out, London handed them two business cards. One was for a furniture store in Milford, and the other was for an electronics store in North Haven. She said to just hand the cards to the managers and they would be taken care of.

So, after they both got off work on that Friday, they both changed clothes, packed a bag, and headed on down the road. While on the road, they were able to talk about what classes they are looking at.

"So, Cody, I know they encourage us to choose our course of study early. Have you thought more about what you are going to choose?"

Cody paused. "Remember when I told you that my dream as a kid was to be the first doctor lawyer in space?"

Bailey smiled. "Yeah, I do...Still aiming for that?"

"Nah...I've dropped the space part, but I'm still going back and forth between doctor and lawyer..."

"So, what are you going to do?"

"I know this my sound crazy, but I think I'm going to double major in Economics and Pre-Med. That way, I can decide later whether to take the LSAT or the MCAT. Am I crazy?"

Bailey rubbed his arm soothingly. "No, not at all. I think you would be great at either..."

Cody smiled and briefly turned to her. "What about you? What are you looking at? The Environmental Sciences?"

Bailey paused. "I loved the class and I love my summer internship. But I just don't know if that's what I want to do for the rest of my life..."

"What else do you have in mind?"

"I was also thinking about maybe veterinary school..."

Cody was surprised. "Really? You never said anything about it..."

"Well, it was an idea that popped into my mind after you said that's what Rebecca was saving up money for..."

"Bails, I know you'd be a wonderful vet..."

"You think so?"

Cody smiled. "Of course. I saw how you were with all the animals on the farm and with Porkers..." He paused. "But would you be happy doing that?"

Bailey paused to think. "I think so...I do love animals, and I've always loved helping them."

"Well, if that's what makes you happy, you have my complete and total support..."

Bailey smiled. "Thank you, Sweetie. And you have my complete and total support too..."

Cody smiled. "Who knows, maybe one day we will be Dr. and Dr. Martin..."

Bailey laughed. "I like the sound of that..."

Cody laughed too. "We can open our practices in the same building and have a sign out front that says people to the left, animals to the right..."

"I can see it now..."

"Of course, we'll have to find a place that has both of our grad programs we want..."

Bailey nods. "That's true. I don't think there are that many vet schools around the country though. What if I don't get into one that also has a good law school or medical school?"

"You know what they call the person who graduates from the worst law school or med school?"

"What's that?"

Cody smiled. "A lawyer or a doctor. Besides, I will do what ever it takes to make you happy. Even if that means we go to grad school in Alaska..."

Bailey smiled back. "And I would do the same for you."

"You know, I do hear Yale has good Pre-Med and Pre-Vet programs..."

"Yeah..." Bailey paused. "You know, it might be a good idea to have a double major too to fall back on..."

"It couldn't hurt. What are you thinking of?"

"Well, if I do decide to go back to Tipton, an Economics degree would be good too. That, and we would for sure have classes we could take together..."

"I'd be for that..." Cody smiled. "I would love to have my favorite study partner..."

Bailey smiled. "Me too..."

"You know, I can think of another benefit if I went to med school and you to vet school..."

Bailey turned to him. "Yeah, what's that?"

Cody laughed. "We could both come home reeking of formaldehyde and the other wouldn't notice or care..."

Bailey laughed. "Very true..." Then she grinned. "And both take our time helping each other scrub the smell away..."

Cody turned to her briefly and grinned. "Do you remember the last time we made this trip?"

"Yeah, I do...If I remember correctly, we were both thinking about the same thing the whole way down..."

"Can you believe that its been a whole year?"

"I know. But I will never forget that trip for as long as I live..."

Cody reached over to take her hand in his. "Me either..." Cody smiled. "I do have another surprise for you..."

Bailey smiled. "Does it involve a certain bed and breakfast we stayed at the last time?"

"Yeah, it does..."

"Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could get our old room back?"

"Well, I requested it and they said they would see what they could do..."

"Maybe we could even go for a walk on the beach tonight too?"

"I had the exact same thought..." Cody noticed a sign that they New Haven was fast approaching. "We're almost there. You want to stop and get something to eat before we get there?"

"Yeah, I am kind of hungry..."

And with that, Cody and Bailey pulled in to New Haven to begin their weekend there.

_To be Continued..._


	2. Chapter 2

_Chapter Two_

_Again, I don't own these characters except the ones I create._

After stopping to get something to eat, Cody and Bailey arrive at the same bed and breakfast as the year before. As hoped, they were booked into the same room as last time. By the time they had arrived, the sun was about to set, so they decided to take a walk on the beach and watch it.

"This brings back some memories..."

"Yeah, it does...I can't believe how nervous I was about bringing it up with you..."

Cody smiled. "I remember thinking I had done a horrible job of hiding how much I wanted you..."

Bailey smiled. "You still do a horrible job of hiding it..."

"I'm not trying to hide it anymore..."

"I'm glad you aren't...neither am I."

"It is nice to know that if we get stressed out, we'll have a place to come and relax."

"I know...I can't imagine anywhere more peaceful and associated with so many good memories."

Cody grinned. "While I love this beach, most of my good memories happened in our room..."

Bailey grinned. "Mine too..."

Cody stops them and takes both of her hands in his. "I really mean that. You are and always will be the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. Even after a year, I still stare in awe every time you share your body with me. You could appear in the pages of magazines, but I'm glad the view is reserved for only me..."

Bailey blushed. "It will always be only yours, but I don't know if I agree about the magazine part..." She paused and smiled. "How would you know about that anyways?"

Cody paused and sighed. "Lets just say when I had to stay in Zack's room, I found one mixed in the collection of comics they had in the bathroom..."

"And you looked at it?"

"Not intentionally. It fell open while I was trying to tidy up in there..."

"And what did you see?"

Cody smiled. "Nothing that was close to being in the same league as you..."

Bailey smiled. "Really?"

"Really. I've never had a desire to look at those things. Because what I have in reality is so much better than anything I could find in there..."

"Cody, I do appreciate that. And I've tried real hard to keep my body looking good..."

"Bails, it looks better than just good..."

Bailey smiled again. "But I know it won't always look like this. I will get older, and at some point I'll be big as a house when we're have kids..."

Cody smiled again. "And I'll be getting older right along side you and it won't change a thing to me. And when you are pregnant carrying our child...or children, you will be the most beautiful I will ever see you..." He chuckled. "So much so that you'll have to buy a stick to fend me off with..."

Bailey leaned up and kissed him. "I don't think I'll need one of those. But I do think we need to head on back to our room..."

"I couldn't agree more..."

Bailey and Cody returned to their room, and proceeded to celebrate their other anniversary. They thought it sounded like a plan to come back there every summer to honor that wonderful weekend with a repeat of it.

The next morning, they were up early and off to the campus for their appointment. When they walked into the office of their adviser, they were surprised to see the name on the door...Dr. William Thomas. As they walked in, an older gentleman looked up at them over the top of his bifocals and smiled.

"You must be Bailey Pickett and Cody Martin..."

"Yes, sir."

He smiled. "Please call me, Bill. Beyond your adviser, I'm also one of your landlords."

"Its nice to finally meet you, Bill...Thank you again for nominating us for the Albright Award."

"You're welcome, but you two earned it..." He grinned. "Besides, I get to hold it over some of my colleagues that my nominations finally won..."

"Well try to live up to it."

"I know you will. My wife and niece have nothing but good things to say about you both. Now, how about we get down to business. I know Jo wants to meet us for lunch, so we better figure out what we're going to do about your schedules..." And with that, he turns to his computer to pull up the University's information on Cody and Bailey.

He turns back to them. "Very impressive. With all of your AP credits, you're both technically first year sophomores..."

Both Bailey and Cody were pleasantly surprised to hear that. "So, what does that mean exactly?"

"Well, it means you both already have over 30 hours of college credit with A's to your names including knocking out most of your prerequisites. Now tell me, have you both been thinking about which curriculum paths you want to pursue?"

Bailey nodded. "I want to do a double major of Economics and Pre-Veterinary..."

Cody followed. "And I want to do a double major of Economics and Pre-Med..."

Bill smiled. "Very ambitious. I like that. I must warn you though, I'm an Economics professor here at Yale, so odds are you will both see me quite a bit..."

Cody smiled. "I can think of worse things than having the professor next door if you have questions."

Bill laughed. "That's true I suppose. I will tell you that the Pre-Med and Pre-Vet programs have a lot of the same courses as well early on. I guess Chemistry and Biology are all pretty basic in the beginning..."

"So, what do you suggest?"

"Well, with your prerequisites done, you both can charge right into your preliminary major courses. I would suggest at least two in Economics – most likely Microeconomics and Macroeconomics and an advance course in Chemistry and Biology..."

"And for the other course?"

"Well, Yale requires courses in Writing, Quantitative Reasoning and Foreign Language. You've already knocked those all out. So, basically, its up to you as to your fifth class. But, if I may make a suggestion, your Chemistry and Biology classes both have two hour labs to take with them. If you take both of those, you would each be taking a sixteen hour semester..."

Cody and Bailey look at each other and agreed that that probably sounded like a good idea.

"Good, now that we know what we are looking at, let's try to find you guys some schedules..." He pauses. "Am I to assume you wouldn't mind having identical schedules?"

Both Cody and Bailey smiled at that and said that wouldn't mind at all.

"Before I look, do either of you have preferences to your schedule like morning as opposed to afternoon classes?"

Cody paused. "I think the only things we really want to avoid are having our classes so spread out that we are on campus all day for them and having two classes back to back in buildings across campus from each other that we only have ten minutes to get to..."

Bill nods. "Completely understandable and good thinking that some of our seniors haven't caught on to yet. Well, it looks like there is an open chemistry lab on Tuesday afternoon at 1:00 and an open biology lab on Thursday afternoon at 1:00. How do those sound?"

Cody and Bailey both nod. "Sounds good to us."

"If I may suggest, I would suggest having one other class on Tuesday and Thursday. There is a macroeconomics course on those days from 9:30 to 10:45. Is two hours between classes too much time?"

"Sounds fine to us. It will give us time to grab lunch and prepare for the labs."

Bill checks his computer again. "Well, there is good news and bad news. The bad news is the class is already full..."

Bailey sighed. "Oh..."

Bill smiled. "But if you two don't mind putting up with me as your professor, I can override you both into it..."

Cody smiled. "If you wouldn't mind..."

Bill types something in to the computer. "Done, three down, three to go...Alright, now, if it were me, I think I'd rather have the biology class either early or after lunch, but not right before it..."

Cody and Bailey look at each other and nod. "Probably a good idea."

"Alright, here is an opening in one at 9:00 AM on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays in a building not far from the duplex. Sound good?"

Cody and Bailey nod.

"And here is an open chemistry class at 1:00 PM on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays in the same building. And I know the professor. She's very good..."

"Sign us up then."

"Alright, that leaves microeconomics. The only one on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays is at 11:00 AM. Do you mind having an hour in between classes?"

"No, that's fine. It will give us time for lunch or to study."

Bill paused and laughed. "Well, I'm the professor for that one too...Think you can handle having me everyday of the week?"

Bailey smiled. "Well, we had your niece twice a day every day for the past year..."

Bill laughs again. "Well, I promise I will keep my personal life out of my lectures..." He pauses. "Do you two know anything about this mystery boyfriend she has?"

Cody and Bailey look at each other and begin to laugh.

"Am I missing something?"

"No, he's a great guy. You'll get along great with him...Especially if you like pocket hankies..."

Bill pauses. "Okay...Well, anyways, looks like that takes care of you both."

Cody smiled. "Looks like we have a schedule then."

Bill smiles. "Well, I guess that makes you official Yale students then. Congratulations."

"Thank you."

"Alright, we need to get out of here then. I don't want my wife mad at me for keeping you guys too long..."

_To be Continued..._


	3. Chapter 3

_Chapter Three_

_Again, I don't own these characters except the ones I create._

Bailey, Cody and Bill met up with Jo at a small restaurant right off of campus. Normally, it was a popular college hangout, but it being summer, it was fairly empty. Jo watched them come in and smiled at them.

"Good to see you two again. I hope Bill didn't bore you two too much this morning..."

Bailey smiled. "Good to see you again too. And as Bill is going to be teaching two of our classes next semester, I think we'll refrain from saying he bored us..."

Jo laughed. "You pour souls. I wouldn't wish that on anyone..."

Bill rolls his eyes and sighs.

Jo continues. "I did talk to my niece earlier this morning. It seems some congratulations are in order..."

Bill turns to his wife. "What do you mean?"

Jo smiles. "Cody and Bailey are now engaged..."

"Well, congratulations to you both..."

Before he could continue, the waitress came over and took their orders. Bailey excused herself to run to the ladies room and Jo went with her. With the women gone, Bill turns back to Cody.

"Alright, I know that classes don't start until next month, but I'm going to teach you something today. From here on out, you need to learn the phrase 'Whatever you say, Dear'. More and more, it will be worth it to you to give in. I love my wife more than anything in the world, but you will have to learn to pick your battles..."

"I tried that before, and she got mad at me. She says she wants my opinion on everything..."

Bill laughs. "That may have been true while you were dating, but once you put that ring on her finger, all the rules changed..."

Cody was confused. "What do you mean?"

"I mean from here on out, you aren't going to be happy unless she is happy. You will never win an argument ever again. So, only argue about things that one, you feel passionate about and two, you know you are right. You may come out victorious in the argument, but you will still lose..."

Cody shakes his head. "I can't believe that..."

"Oh, its true. And you'll start to dread those four little words every married man hates hearing...we need to talk."

"But Bailey and I are very open and talk about everything..."

"When they say it, it doesn't mean we need to talk, it means she wants you to listen while she tells you all the ways you've been screwing up lately. So, if she says 'we need to talk', set a fire, it's easier to deal with..."

Cody sighs. "That can't be true. Bailey and I really talk and listen to each other..."

Bill smiles. "Every guy who has just got married thinks his marriage will be different. But it never is. The divorce rate is so high because more and more guys can't accept it. Do you really love her?"

"Absolutely..."

"Then go ahead and accept it now. It will make things a whole lot easier down the road..."

Bill was about to continue but Bailey and Jo returned to the table.

"So, what were you two guys talking about while we were gone?"

Bill paused. "Oh, I was just giving Cody a welcome to the club of married men..."

Jo rolled her eyes. "You didn't fill his head with rubbish did you?"

"I told him the truth..."

"Cody, forget everything he just told you. He may think he knows things, but he really doesn't..."

Cody looked back and forth between them not sure who to believe while Bailey looked to Cody in confusion as to what she had missed.

Jo continued. "So, are you two heading back to Boston this afternoon?"

Bailey snapped back to the present. "Actually, we have some shopping to do. We still have to look at bedroom furniture, bookshelves, a dining table, and living room furniture..."

Jo nods and smiles. "All courtesy of London Tipton, right?"

"Yeah. How did you know that?"

Jo laughs. "Emma turned us on to Miss Tipton's web show. We caught Cody's last episode..."

Cody sighs. "Yeah, I guess I sold my dignity that day..."

Bill shrugs. "You'll get used to it..."

Jo slaps his arm. "Stop telling him things like that!"

Bill was saved from further scolding by the waitress bringing over their food. With them eating, Bill couldn't say anything else to get him in trouble. As they were waiting for the bill, Jo turned to Cody and Bailey again.

"So, if you two have disagreements on what you like, how will you decide?"

Bill cleared his throat and shot Cody a look.

Bailey finally spoke. "We aren't sure yet. We had a bet that whoever got valedictorian between the two of us would get final the tie breaking vote in decisions, but we tied for valedictorian so we are back to square one..."

Jo smiled. "Well, I'm sure you two will figure something out...Well, we should let you two get moving on, you've both got a lot to do..."

Bailey smiles. "Thank you again for lunch and for everything else..."

"We'll see you both in a month."

Bailey and Cody get up and say goodbye. Once they get back to their vehicle, Bailey immediately turns to Cody and wants to know everything that Bill had told him. As they drove to their first destination, Cody filled Bailey on his and Bill's conversation. As they pulled into the parking lot, Bailey just looked at Cody.

"What do you think about what he said?"

"I don't want to believe it, but part of me is saying they've been married for so long that maybe there is some truth to what he said..."

"But we've talked about this before. I told you I want your opinion. I want a fiance and a husband, not a lap dog..."

"That's exactly what I told him..."

"What did he say to that?"

"He said the rules changed once I put the ring on your finger. Did they?"

Bailey paused. "I don't think so. I don't want them to."

"Neither do I...But at the same time, I would do anything to make you happy."

"I know. And what will make me happy is you sharing with me your opinions. Of course we are going to disagree from time to time, but that's only natural. But there is no one I would rather disagree with..."

Cody nods. "Same here..." He pauses and smiles. "And the best part of having arguments is making up afterwards..."

Bailey smiles too. "You're right. Bill may have been married a long time, but it doesn't mean his way is the only way. Besides, didn't we say our relationship is all our own and it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks?"

"Yeah, we did. You're right. Let him do it his way, and we'll do things our own way. Its worked for us for over two years now, why try to change things now..."

"Exactly. Now, are you ready to go decide between us how we want to furnish our place?"

"Let's do it!"

Their first stop was a a nearby furniture store in Milford, CT. Cody and Bailey had already made a list of everything they needed. Once inside, they asked to see the manager and handed them the card that London had given them. He looked at it, back at Cody and Bailey and motioned one of his sales people over to them. He instructed her to write down everything they wanted and it would be taken care of. The salesgirl began leading them into the store asking where they wanted to start first.

They decided to start with the bedroom. They needed to get a mattress and box springs, so they both tested them out till they both found one they liked. Next, it was on to other bedroom furniture. Bailey mentioned to the salesgirl that their bed was brass, so if they had anything with brass, it would be nice. She immediately took them to over to a collection of a dresser with mirror, armoire and two end tables that all had brass fixtures on them. Cody and Bailey immediately loved them.

Next, it was on to dining room furniture. Since the area for the dining room table was small, they settled on a small round table with with four chairs around it. It was made of the same wood as their bedroom furniture.

Continuing on, she lead them to living room furniture. Bailey and Cody both thought a couch, loveseat and chair would be the way to go. And in selecting them, both preferred comfort over style. A couch was meant to be sat and laid on after all. And they preferred one that was deep enough for them both to lie on comfortably. In the end, the found a set they liked the looks of and was comfortable. They also chose to have the couch be a sleeper sofa in case they had company. Next, they moved on to end tables and a coffee table. They quickly settled on ones that matched the rest of their selections.

The final thing the saleslady showed them was lighting. Cody just wanted to them to emit light, so he didn't really care one way or the other. But, Bailey was able to find lamps for the living room, bedroom and home office.

Once done, the saleslady was writing up the sales slip giddily knowing the commission she was going to get was going to be nice. She asked them for the delivery date and wrote down August 15. She went back to her manager and returned a short time later with a receipt for them.

Cody and Bailey left the furniture store and returned back to New Haven before turning north to go to North Haven. When they got to the address, the found the store was similar to a Best Buy. They did the same thing as the furniture store and spoke to the manager. Again, a sales person was summoned to show them around.

Electronics wise, they didn't need as much as they did furniture. But, surprisingly enough, the first thing they looked at was more furniture...desk chairs and bookshelves. Cody and Bailey each picked out a chair they thought would suit their needs the best. Then they picked out a couple of bookshelves they thought would match their partner's desk. Of course, it was then that Cody learned that they would have to assemble them themselves. Next, it was on to small appliances. They already had most of what they needed, but they picked out a toaster, coffee maker, crock pot, iron, ironing board, and a vacuum.

Next was home entertainment. Cody and Bailey were neither big TV watchers, but decided they needed one in case of emergencies and possible educational needs. So, they selected a relatively small one , and the salesman suggested a flat screen they could hang on the wall. Cody and Bailey only shrugged and agreed. Finally, the sales person lead them to the computer section. They already had their laptops, but were talked into a nice combination laser printer/scanner/copier.

By this time, both were tired of shopping and felt they had everything they needed. The salesperson did the same as the other one and brought them out a receipt. Leaving the store, both found themselves exhausted. Both were glad London had picked up the tab as they both shuddered to think how much they had spent that day. As it was getting late, they decided to pick up some food and head on to their room.

Their last night in New Haven for the time being was spent taking it easy in their room. Both were too tired to do much besides slip into the jacuzzi tub in their room. After both relaxing and soothing their tired bodies, they both climbed into bed together for a much needed rest. The next morning, they would begin their drive back. But, everything was now set for their return in only a matter of weeks.

_The End..._


End file.
